In an application released by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on Thursday, Walmart describes a “sensible package” that would contain a device which would record data on a blockchain relating to the contents of the package, its environmental situations, its place and a lot more. It also suggests that its wise package could be employed in tandem with other emerging technologies like “autonomous autos,” such as drones.

The patent was initial submitted in August of 2017, and notably builds on a filing&nbspWalmart submitted for a blockchain-based drone package delivery tracking technique final year.

Walmart explains in the filing that online buying has designed shipping challenges for retailers, specifically with regard to perishable goods requiring temperature control, thus necessitating further innovation.

Walmart writes in the application:

“These on the web buyers many times seek to purchase items that may need a controlled environment and further seek to have higher security in the shipping packaging that the products are shipped in.”

The application states that the blockchain element will be encrypted into the device, and will have “key addresses along the chain of [the package’s] custody, like hashing with a seller private important address, a courier private crucial address and a purchaser private crucial address.”

In addition to its delivery drone aspirations, Walmart has sought to apply blockchain technologies to other regions of its business.

Final year, it joined Kroger, Nestle and other food business firms in a partnership with IBM to use the blockchain to improve food traceability. It backed a similar work in China with JD.com in December.

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